One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Rensselaer can be reffered to in order to determine when to plant zucchini.

Planting Calendar for Zucchini

Frost tolerance for zucchini:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Zucchini are not cold tolerant which tells us that it is necessary to wait until it warms up after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant zucchini in Rensselaer is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant zucchini and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your zucchini may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your zucchini indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Rensselaer the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Rensselaer is an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Rensselaer last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to cover your zucchini if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Rensselaer

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-15°F
Highest Expected Low	-10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Rensselaer

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Rensselaer.